A dinosaur inside a shopping mall

Once upon a time long-necked dinosaurs roamed the world. The original skeleton of one such long-necked, whip-tailed sauropod that is over 155 million years old is on display at the Souk dome in Dubai Mall. The dinosaur was named DubaiDino in a competition.

The dinosaur belongs to the family Diplodocidae, derived from the Greek words diplos (double) and dokos (beam). The name Diplodocidae, refers to the bones resembling two beams located under its tail. These bones helped the dinosaur to lift its mighty tail. As heavy as five elephants, these lizard-footed ‘sauropods,’ were vegetarians. The dinosaur’s long neck helped it to swing side-to-side fast and to reach tree tops for food. It simply gulped down whole branches and leaves without chewing.

This dinosaur skeleton was discovered in 2008 at the Dana Quarry in Wyoming, USA, and air-freighted to Dubai. When discovered, the exhibit was found in a sleeping position. The dinosaur could have died during a drought. Dana Quarry, where its skeleton was found, was a natural trap. Both predator and prey came here seeking water to drink. About 90 percent of this fossil’s bones are original and were found intact at the excavation site, making it one of the rarest discoveries in paleontology history. Its tail bones were found broken, either ferociously bitten by a prey, or through trauma from a tail fight. No comparable exhibit, with nearly all bones completing the skeleton, exists elsewhere. The skeleton is 80 ft (24.4 metres) long and 25 ft (7.6 metre) high a sprightly young adult.